Chefs from top Dubai hotels have visited Northern Ireland to sample some of our best home-grown food and drink with the intention of adding local produce to their menus back home.
They took part in a ‘larder challenge’ with Northern Ireland chefs at the Belfast Met Culinary College on Wednesday afternoon.
It's hoped that their trip, which was organised by Invest NI, will set their taste buds racing and encourage them to serve up more NI produce in the Middle East - creating jobs and investment here.
Over 40 local companies submitted products which the chefs used to create a ‘Year of Food and Drink’ tasting buffet.
The producers of these ingredients then had the opportunity to meet the chefs who used their produce and network with buyers from key retail and foodservice outlets in the Middle East.
Northern Ireland exported more than £100m worth of goods to India, the Middle East and Africa in the year up until September 2015 and Enterprise, Trade and Investment Minister Jonathan Bell wants that figure to grow.
“This larder challenge and networking showcase is an exciting opportunity for influential chefs and buyers in Dubai to sample the quality of our local products for themselves,” he said.
“The Northern Ireland food and drink industry is making a big effort to showcase the pure, natural, quality of local food and drink.”
Haiko-Michael Schäfer prepares meals for Emirates Airlines at Dubai International Airport, which has just been confirmed as the busiest in the world.
It's a market Northern Ireland wants a bigger slice of.
Mr Schäfer said when it comes to being impressed, he’s looking for a good product.
“(NI) is a growing market. In Dubai we don’t grow so much so we have to look all over the world and Northern Ireland is definitely a place which has some possibility.
“When you get a good product, you get a good outcome.”
Ben Tobitt, from the Jumeriah Hotel Group, added: “Everything is impressed me. There’s an amazing array of ingredients here. It’s really nice.”
Congratulation!